


The Love Nest

by Impala_Chick



Category: Buzzfeed Unsolved (Web Series)
Genre: Filming, First Kiss, Fluff and Humor, Getting Together, Ghosts, M/M, Matchmaking, Mutual Pining, ghosts setting up the ghoul boys, so many tropes i'm very sorry, these ghosts may or may not be horny ghosts
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-31
Updated: 2020-10-31
Packaged: 2021-03-09 03:13:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,130
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27297715
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Impala_Chick/pseuds/Impala_Chick
Summary: Ryan and Shane film at a small farm which used to be the home of two 19th century matchmakers. Strange things start happening and it becomes harder and harder for Shane to avoid his feelings.
Relationships: Ryan Bergara/Shane Madej
Comments: 20
Kudos: 122
Collections: Skeptic Believer Book Club Hallowe'en Fic Exchange 2020





	The Love Nest

**Author's Note:**

  * For [RedLlamas](https://archiveofourown.org/users/RedLlamas/gifts).



They’re just outside a sprawling three story victorian style ranch house dubbed “the love nest.” It’s apparently got some morbid history that Shane is not yet aware of, but from where Shane’s standing it looks totally normal. The house is adorned with pink trim, and it looks well-taken care of. There’s no peeling paint or boarded up windows. There are some sprawling vines up one side of it. On either side of the house Shane can see fields with green stalks growing in neat rows. The name of the place alone is ridiculous, so right out of the gate Shane lays into the ribbing.

“The Love Nest? Really, Ryan? I mean, I thought we were supposed to be filming unsolved. This place looks like a date location.”

“They can air it in February if they want, it does have a very theme-appropriate name. BUT this place has a grisly, ghostly past.” Ryan stops walking to glare at Shane with his arms crossed. “Maybe you should hold your judgment until I get into the story.” 

“Right, fine.” Shane holds both of his hands up in surrender. “Maybe this place will look a little less idyllic when it gets dark.”

“That’s the spirit,” Ryan says as he smiles and keeps on walking. His ghost hunting boots make a crunching sound as he walks up the gravel pathway towards the front door.

Mark and Devon are behind them setting up the camera to shoot some b-roll. Shane keeps on looking up at the house. The sun is just starting to set, and there’s a serene sort of quiet that has descended on the property. He looks over at Ryan, who smiles at him and adjusts the buckles of the harness holding the camera against his chest. 

“Alright, I think we got enough for now. You can start in on the story,” Devon says.

Ryan claps his hands together and steps onto the top step, Shane on his heels. He pulls out an old-timey key from his pocket and pushes it into the lock.

“Whoa, that thing looks very cool,” Shane comments. 

“Oh yeah, they told me it’s the original key. The very one Mr. and Mrs. Van Duskin used to open the door to the love nest way back in 1869.”

“Ha. 69.” Shane giggles, Ryan rolls his eyes, and then the front door squeaks open. Shane notices Ryan shiver as he steps inside, and Shane snorts. He’s about to make some crack about Ryan’s jitters, but something stops him short.

Once Shane’s boot is over the threshold, he feels a weird sensation. Almost like a puff of air against his chest. If he didn’t know better, he’d say that he just walked past a fan or something.

“Did you feel that?” Ryan asks in a terrified whisper, his eyes wide as he stares at Shane.

Shane shrugs. “It gets drafty here. It’s an old house.”

Their banter is par for the course, so Shane doesn’t even feel bad about lying. He scratches the back of his neck and keeps walking. Just because he can’t explain what he felt, doesn’t mean he should get Ryan all riled up about it. 

The rest of the shoot is fairly uneventful. They wonder through the narrow hallways of the house while Ryan talks about how the couple that lived there used to work as matchmakers. People from all over the county would come to their house in their covered wagons seeking guidance on how to snag their special someone. Shane really should have guessed that across centuries, people can use help searching for love. It’s still weird to picture people hopping off their covered wagons in hoop skirts or stove pipe hats, trying to get fixed up with the Mayor’s son or the reclusive tailor down the street. The weirdest part of the story is that the couple got brutally murdered by a crazy unsatisfied customer.

After they’ve been shooting for an hour or so, Ryan suggests they go outside to explore the fields. Apparently the couple were buried in their own yard. That does kind of creep Shane out, but in a way that piques his curiosity and makes him want to check it out.

Devon and Mark stay at the edge of the field to get a wide shot of them as they walk. 

“Okay, so where do you think the bodies are?” Shane asks as he glances over at Ryan. He can’t help but grin at the way Ryan looks, his eyes laser-focused on their destination. His hair is combed to the side and gelled, and his hoodie is stretched tight across the width of his shoulders. It’s a classic Ryan look, but Shane is still not over it. Shane also happens to have a fantastic view of Ryan’s ass, and Shane’s not complaining about that either.

“No tombstones, but I would bet they’re under that big oak tree. Looks like the perfect place to be buried if I was the one picking the place.” 

“Right.” Shane scoffs. 

They’re almost to the tree when a gust of wind rushes across the field and ruffles his hair. Shane can hear the plants around them straining to stay upright, and then the low murmur of a song drifts up from the ground.

Ryan freezes. “Do you hear that?” He whispers between clenched teeth. 

“Are you guys singing?” Shane shouts over his shoulder at Mark and Devon. Surely, there’s an explanation for what he’s hearing. They are both walking towards them now, camera in hand.

“What?” Devon shouts back.

“Dude, shut up!” Ryan hisses.

The singing is fainter, but there’s definitely something there. Shane can’t really make out the words, but it sounds vaguely familiar. The chorus swells and then rolls through the field, and Shane finally makes out the words.

_I want to stand with you on a mountain_

“Wait, is that…?” He turns to Ryan. 

_I want to bathe with you in the sea_

“What the fuck?” Ryan says. “Savage Garden?”

Shane bursts out laughing. “Someone’s just got their radio on or something, Ryan.”

Ryan does not look amused, and he keeps whipping his head around to find the source of the music. Once Devon and Mark reach them, the singing abruptly stops. Definitely suspicious timing, although Shane is sure that’s just a coincidence. 

“Did you guys hear that?” Ryan asks with his eyes wide.

Devon squints her eyes and shakes her head, and Mark hurriedly starts recording. 

Ryan gets the spirit box out with shaky hands and turns it on. It does its scratchy scanning thing for a few seconds, until the familiar line of a savage garden song starts blaring through the speakers. 

_I knew I loved you_

And then it cuts off completely. The field is eerily quiet.

Shane can’t help it. He throws his head back in a barking laugh. “The spirits want to listen to Savage Garden!”

Ryan huffs a laugh as he inspects the box and turns it off and then on again. “Was that you, Mrs. Van Duskin? Do you like cheesy love songs? Was that a message?”

There’s just static instead of an answer. 

“Oh c’mon. I know you want to get back at all those shitty ex-lovers. Or maybe all those people that wouldn’t take your advice, hmm?” Shane taunts, his voice rising as he walks around the gnarled old oak tree.

“I’m not even going to take your advice, you hear me! You suck at matchmaking!” Shane isn’t even sure of exactly what he’s saying, he’s just trying to lean into the bit and rile Ryan up a bit.

What he absolutely doesn’t expect is for an exposed tree root to get in his way. He could have sworn he watched where he was walking, but he trips anyway and lands on his hands and knees. An embarrassing _oof_ sound escapes him, but he doesn’t land hard enough for the wind to get knocked out of him.

“Shane?” Ryan asks as he comes around the tree.

“I’m fine,” Shane hurriedly answers. He scrambles up and tries to brush the dirt off the knees of his previously pristine chinos. He feels a little rattled, but he’s otherwise unscathed. 

Ryan turns off the spirit box and looks over at Shane with wide eyes. Shane can see how big his pupils are because his headlamp is illuminating Ryan’s face. He seems genuinely worried as he scans Shane up and down. He reaches up and dusts something off of Shane’s cheek. “Maybe we should take a little break or something.” 

“Yeah, sure.” Shane feels tingly all over, and he can’t quite figure out why. He had liked the way Ryan looked at him, though. Like Shane was his number one concern at that moment, like Shane was his sole focus. He liked the way Ryan’s fingers felt on his cheeks, too. Very warm and comforting, and not at all weird.

“What happened?” Devon says with alarm once they both come back around the tree together. 

“I’m fine, I just tripped.” Shane says sheepishly as he scratches the back of his neck.

“You sure? I can get the first aid kit,” she says hastily. 

Shane shakes his head. 

“We’re just going to head back to the house now,” Ryan explains as he pockets the spirit box and turns on his flashlight. 

Shane heads off, suddenly not wanting to be coddled anymore. When Ryan is more in control than he is, the whole dynamic feels off. Plus, Shane is vaguely getting the sense that he’s being watched, even though that’s a totally ridiculous thought. 

Once they get back to the house, they say their goodbyes to Devon and Mark. 

Shane just has to make it through the night with Ryan, which should be easy enough. Sleeping next to Ryan in his own sleeping bag is something he’s done more times than he can count, and besides Shane usually falls asleep pretty easily. As long as he doesn’t stare too dreamily in Ryan’s direction while the camera is rolling, he should be good.

Maybe it was just the vast emptiness of the field that made him feel unsettled. They really are in the middle of nowhere, and that became patently obvious as soon as Devon and Mark drove away.

“Alright big guy, let’s sleep in the master bedroom. It was good enough for the Mister and Missus, so I’m sure it’s good enough for us.” Ryan starts up the stairs with his flashlight in front of him to light up the steps.

Shane gulps and tries to keep his voice steady as he asks, “So no sleeping bags?” 

Ryan snorts. “I am definitely still using a sleeping bag. No way in hell am I getting under those old covers.” 

“Right, fair point.” Shane breathes a sigh of relief. Sharing a bed with Ryan would have felt _intimate_. It would have been too close to being the real thing, and Shane’s heart would have probably jumped out of his chest from the sheer agony of it. 

Ryan reaches the landing and starts down the hallway and Shane dutifully follows after. He shines his flashlight haphazardly around as he walks, but he stops when the light illuminates a weird engraving that immediately captures his attention. He doesn’t remember seeing it earlier in the day when they’d walked through the hallway with Mark and Devon.

“Hey, Ry. Did you see this?” Shane asks. There’s nothing inherently spooky about it, but it definitely makes for a weird coincidence. 

Ryan comes back to look where Shane is pointing, and then he gasps. He stares at it for a minute, and then narrows his eyes at Shane. “Dude, did you do this as some kind of sick joke?”

“What? No. I don’t even have a pocket knife on me.” Shane says truthfully. “Also, as far as pranks go, this would be a stupid one.”

Ryan traces his fingers over the prominent **S + R** , inside a heart that’s carved into the wall. 

“For all we know, the Van Duskins had names that started with S and R,” Shane says, although he has a feeling Ryan already knows their first names.

“Their names were Patricia and Walter.” Ryan says, his voice soft. The way his eyes keep tracing the letters makes Shane’s stomach twist up in knots. He sort of regrets bringing the carving to Ryan’s attention, because now he can’t read Ryan’s expression. Does he hate it? Is he thinking about how ridiculous it would be if they actually, like, dated? 

“Well, uh. Neat little coincidence. Anyway, time for bed.” Shane awkwardly dashes off down the hallway to the master bedroom. He hears Ryan follow along behind him not long afterwards.

Alarm bells are definitely sounding in Shane’s head, and the hairs on the back of his neck are standing up. But any visitors with names that start with S and R could have scratched their initials for them to find.

Shane sets up the tripod and awkwardly ignores Ryan, who keeps pacing around the bedroom. He knows Ryan will eventually say something, so he just waits him out.

“With the music earlier and the names on the wall, I feel like this house is trying to tell us something. I just can’t figure out what,” Ryan muses after a few more minutes of silence.

Shane pushes his glasses up on his nose and then puts a hand on his hip. “You’re thinking about this way too much, Ry. We’ve definitely been to scarier places. Some random people named Sam and Rachel just happened to visit before us.”

Ryan shakes his head. “But that’s just it, Shane. This place is closed to visitors. It’s not a museum. The person who owns it takes care of it, and we had to persuade them to let us come film. Why would they let some randos deface the wall?”

Okay, Shane previously did not have any of that information. But his opinion still stands. The place is fucking _old_. Other people have walked through the same halls they just walked through hundreds of times, and he says as much.

Ryan squints his eyes at him and his eyebrows squish together like he’s thoroughly annoyed at Shane’s dedication to disavowing his totally baseless theories. 

“Sure. But at this point I’m going to try the spirit box one more time. Just humor me.”

Ryan sits down at the foot of the master bed. The camcorder on the tripod is already pointed in that direction, so Shane turns it on.

Shane ignores the scratchy sound of the box as he takes off the go-pro strapped to his chest. He rummages through his duffel to get a soft shirt to sleep in and then pulls his other shirt off, while Ryan keeps himself otherwise occupied. Shane doesn’t even feel self-conscious about it like he usually does, because Ryan probably isn’t paying any attention to him anyway.

Just as Shane goes to put his head through the hole of his sleep shirt, the spirit box lets out a loud shriek. Ryan gasps in fear, and Shane pauses awkwardly with one arm stuck in the shirt. 

“Is that you, Mrs. Van Duskin? What are you trying to say?” Ryan asks, his voice high-pitched.

Shane continues to pull the shirt down over his head. As he does, the spirit box lets out a feminine scream of anguish that goes on far longer than the initial shriek. 

“Please, you don’t have to shout at us!” Ryan begs.

The scream is so unsettling that Shane’s skin is tingling. He turns around slowly to look at Ryan, whose eyes are as wide as saucers. He’s standing on the bed, holding the spirit box as far away from himself as he can.

“Is that all you got, Van Duskin? You’re going to have to try harder than that to scare the ghoul boys!” Shane yells in his most commanding tone. 

He steps over to the side of the bed. Ryan relaxes a bit, and his arms come down to his sides. He bends his knees to kneel on the bed, and stares at Shane as if he’s just now realizing Shane is in the room. He turns down the spirit box a little bit, but it’s currently just making its normal scratchy sounds.

Ryan cocks his head, and he’s got that look like he’s about to drop some crazy theory. “Wait, what were you doing just now?” 

“Uh, changing?” Shane says with a shrug.

“Do it again,” Ryan orders. His voice leaves no room for argument, but Shane still feels like he has to protest at least a little bit. 

“Why? You can’t possibly think that there’s a connection.” 

“If that’s true, then there’s nothing to be afraid of, right?” Ryan challenges. 

Shane rolls his eyes and feels his cheeks heating up. He’s going to do it, just to prove Ryan wrong and totally make fun of him after. But he still feels slightly embarrassed about it, considering Ryan’s eyes are locked on his chest and he knows that Ryan is about to see just his _skin_ and even in the dim lights of the room Shane absolutely knows he looks pasty as hell and not at all toned.

He grips the hem of his sleep shirt with both hands and lifts it up over his head. There’s a few moments of tense silence.

“No screams from the box? I’m shocked,” Shane deadpans. Ryan glares at him, and Shane grins in a way that he hopes is totally annoying. 

Shane never took his arms out of the sleep shirt, so it’s an easy thing to pull it back over the top of his head -

Until he’s interrupted by a wail from the spirit box. He freezes, and he can hear Ryan mutter _fuck_ under his breath.

“Dude, it’s something to do with your shirt.” Ryan’s voice sounds incredibly confident as he shouts over the wailing sound. 

Shane scoffs and leaves the shirt around his neck to look at Ryan. “Oh yeah, like they don’t want me to get dressed?” Shane pulls the shirt the rest of the way on, and when he looks up, Ryan is still staring at him. Although this time he looks much less afraid and much more thoughtful.

After about another 30 seconds, the spirit box goes quiet again. 

“That was fucking weird,” Ryan says. He clicks off the spirit box, and doesn’t make Shane get undressed again, which Shane is grateful for. His face feels hot, and he’s probably definitely blushing.

“Maybe we should just go to bed,” Shane offers as he pretends to move stuff around in his duffle bag. He doesn’t know why he feels embarrassed now. His shirt is back on, and he’s about to share a bed with Ryan, which he’s done maybe a dozen other times before. It just feels eerily quiet now that the spirit box is off, and something about the way Ryan was looking at him… Shane doesn’t know how to describe it, which is rare. Ryan is usually so easy to read.

“Yeah, sure.” Shane hears Ryan rustle around with the duvet as he goes to turn off the light. When it clicks off, just the dim light of the camcorder casts a shadow on the bed. Shane carefully makes his way over, and picks up the corner of the duvet to crawl under it. 

Even though Shane still has his sweatpants and shirt on, the covers themselves feel particularly cold. He glances over at Ryan, who has the sheets pulled all the way up to his chin.

“Did it get colder in here?” Ryan wonders.

“We did leave the heater on, right?”

“Yeah, I definitely checked it before we came in here. But this is an old house. Maybe it’s just not very functional?” Ryan thinks aloud. 

Shane feels his shoulders creeping up towards his ears, and he can see his breath when he exhales. 

“Okay, it was definitely not this cold a minute ago,” Shane moans. The covers aren’t really helping. The only bit of warmth is coming from Ryan, who is laying only a few inches away on Shane’s right side.

The bed moves slightly when Ryan shivers. “This house, man. I know you’re just going to laugh but this sudden chill is a sign.”

“Yeah, a sign that they need to update the insulation,” Shane quips.

Shane lays still after that, closes his eyes, and tries to fall asleep. But the cold is definitely distracting. He keeps curling and uncurling his toes, and clenching and unclenching his fingers under the covers, trying to warm them up. Nothing seems to be working. 

“Alright, big guy. Get over here. We can’t fall asleep like this.” Ryan sounds nonchalant about it, like it’s an everyday thing for him to ask his friends to come cuddle him in bed. 

Fear grips Shane, and it’s sort of funny that a friendly platonic totally innocuous request fills him with fear when a ghost’s deadly shrieks don’t. At any rate, Shane doesn’t have time to laugh about it. He doesn’t even have time to re-apply deodorant or pick a better shirt or find some thicker sweatpants.

There’s a weird clicking sound, and then the camera shuts off. The entire room is plunged into darkness.

“What the fuck,” Ryan hisses. 

“Well, should I get up to check it out?” Shane says, fully aware of how valuable their night footage usually is for the episode.

“I guess. We need to keep rolling.” Shane flips the duvet down and gets out of one side of the bed while Ryan gets out of the other. 

Suddenly, the loud static sound of the spirit box fills the room.

“Do you turn the spirit box on?” Shane asks over the noise.

“No, I was just going to ask if you did!” Ryan sounds totally freaked. 

“TELL HIM.” It’s the spirit box, but the words are unmistakable. Then it clicks off abruptly, and the room is eerily quiet. 

Shane doesn’t really have an explanation for whatever the fuck that was, but he can hear Ryan’s footsteps approaching. He squints in the dark until he can make out Ryan’s face. His eyes look wide and terrified. 

“I think we should talk,” he says. 

Shane’s heart is pounding in his chest, and he has no idea where Ryan is going with this, but it can’t be good. “Can’t this wait?” Shane pleads. 

“You remember earlier, with the love song outside? Then the heart with our initials in it? And the screaming when you tried to put your clothes on?”

Shane squints his eyes, totally at a loss. “So?”

“So. I think this house is trying to tell me something. Tell _us_ something.” Ryan reaches out and wraps his warm fingers around Shane’s exposed forearm. Shane shivers from the contact and avoids Ryan’s gaze.

Shane is so far outside his comfort zone that he reverts back to his baser instincts and deflects. “Like what? That you’re a scaredy cat? I already knew that.” 

“No.” Ryan shakes his head stubbornly. “Maybe my crush isn’t so one-sided?” 

Shane sputters and then stares at Ryan, his eyes wide and hopeful. His thumb has started to move against Shane’s skin in slow, calming circles. Shane can’t lie to him now. He gulps.

“You… I. If what you’re telling me is that you’re interested in me in a way that isn’t just platonic, then you’re not alone in that interest. Because I’m interested in you. That way. You know?” Shane finishes lamely. 

Ryan grins, and the camera turns back on on its own, so Ryan's face is illuminated by the soft blue light of the screen. He’s never looked so beautiful.

“Wow. The Van Duskins totally nailed this one.” Ryan giggles and gently tugs Shane closer.

“Oh my God, do NOT give ghosts credit for this,” Shane groans. But his heart is doing somersaults and he can’t stop looking at Ryan’s mouth. It's like a heavy weight has been lifted off his chest, and all he wants to do is get Ryan closer. He doesn't even care about the wacky camera hijinks at this point.

“Is this the part where we kiss?” Ryan asks, sounding a little breathless. 

Shane doesn’t bother hiding his grin, and ducks forward to press his lips to Ryan’s. At that moment,the whole house shudders beneath his feet. It’s over so quickly that Shane could have imagined it.

“Did you feel that?” Ryan gasps against Shane’s mouth.

Shane grins. He can give Ryan this one. “Yeah, maybe.”

Ryan dives back in for a kiss, and Shane gasps against his mouth in surprise and wonder. It doesn't take long for Ryan to push Shane towards the bed. Shane only breaks contact long enough to turn the camera back off. Footage be damned.


End file.
